Dr. Gary Bell's Absurd Psychology

Though our need to connect is innate, many of us frequently feel alone. Loneliness is the state of distress or discomfort that results when one perceives a gap between one’s desires for social connection and actual experiences of it. Even some people who are surrounded by others throughout the day—or are in a long-lasting marriage—still experience a deep and pervasive loneliness. Research suggests that loneliness poses serious threats to well-being as well as long-term physical health. Tune in and learn all about how to identify loneliness and end it!

Geographical psychology examines links between location and psychological phenomena, such as how and why personality traits, life satisfaction, and social behavior differ from place to place—or cluster in certain areas. These differences may appear across hemispheres, regions, states, cities, or neighborhoods. Every location houses psychologically diverse residents. But general differences between populations in distinct places can be informative. If neuroticism or life satisfaction is higher in a certain region, researchers can explore whether geographic aspects of the place, or commonalities among those who choose to live there, might account for the relatively positive or negative trends. Researchers have long explored the links between geography and mental health, hoping to answer questions such as whether the environment in which we live affects our personalities and influences who we are or who we’re destined to be. Tune in and learn all about how geography influences your psychology!

You just moved to a new city. All your friends are getting married or having kids. You retired. You got divorced. You've outgrown your childhood friends. You’ve been clinging to your spouse as your only friend and it’s making you lonely. There are many reasons why you might need to make new friends—and if you don’t need to make them now, you will at some point. Tune in and learn all about how to make and sustain friendship in a busy life!

The question of the meaning of life is perhaps one that we would rather not ask, for fear of the answer or lack thereof. Still today, many people believe that we, humankind, are the creation of a supernatural entity called God, that God had an intelligent purpose in creating us, and that this intelligent purpose is the meaning of life. Tune in for a deep exploration into what our meaning in the life is!

With all the buzz around childhood obesity, it's easy to become desensitized to the statistics. But the shocking figures can't be ignored: Since 1980, the prevalence of obesity among kids and adolescents in the United States has tripled, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Estimates from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) show that 31.7 percent of U.S. children and teens were either overweight or obese in 2008. Among low-income families and certain ethnic groups such as Hispanic boys and black girls, the rates are even higher. The harms of extra pounds are well documented. Obese children are more likely to have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, breathing problems such as asthma and apnea, fatty liver disease and Type 2 diabetes, which historically only affected older, overweight adults. Tune in and learn how to help our children learn how to live healthy!

Promiscuity is formally defined, according to Webster, as including not only frequent but indiscriminate sexual behavior. Preference for frequent sexual contacts is not necessarily the same as being sexually indiscriminating. The latter, in women, indicates a possible compulsive, and therefore, pathological quality to the excessive sexual behavior, referred to traditionally as nymphomania. (In men, it is called satyriasis.) Tune in and learn how promiscuity impacts your life!

Through most of Western civilization, marriage has been more a matter of money, power and survival than of delicate sentiments. In medieval Europe, everyone from the lord of the manor to the village locals had a say in deciding who should wed. Love was considered an absurdly flimsy reason for a match. Even during the Enlightenment and Victorian eras, adultery and friendship were often more passionate than marriage. These days, we marry for love—and are rewarded with a blistering divorce rate. Tune in a learn about the history of marriage and how it once worked compared to today! You might make your marriage better!

Mania can range from mild (known as hypomania) to severe; at its most extreme, mania can trigger delusions, violence, and an increased risk of suicide. Depending on the cause, a manic episode can last anywhere from several days to several months, and will typically increase in severity—and in the level of agitation—as it progresses. Milder mania is more likely to be associated with positive outcomes, like increased productivity or greater feelings of optimism. However, the impulsive behaviors associated with a manic state can lead to substance abuse, unnecessary risks, or poor financial decisions. Tune is an learn all about identifying and resolving mania!

Virtually anyone who has survived sexual assault or experienced sexual harassment knows how painful victim-blaming can be. Survivors are often asked what they were wearing, what they did to “encourage” the perpetrator, or even why they didn’t fight back more. Despite the recent rise of the #MeToo movement, victim-blaming remains a tenacious problem. In fact, it may be more tenacious than any of us imagined. That's because the tendency to blame the victim may be programmed into the human mind at a very basic level. Ask yourself if you've ever wondered whether the victims of a crime or accident had done something to set themselves up for their tragedy? Victim-blaming doesn’t have to involve accusing survivors of directly causing their own misfortune. It can involve the simple thought that you would have been more careful, implying that the tragedy was at least partially their fault. Tune in and learn all about victim blaming and how to confront it!

Body language is a silent orchestra, as people constantly give clues to what they’re thinking and feeling. Non-verbal messages including body movements, facial expressions, vocal tone and volume, and other signals are collectively known as body language. Microexpressions (brief displays of emotion on the face), hand gestures, and posture all register in the human brain almost immediately—even when a person is not consciously aware they have perceived anything. For this reason, body language can strongly color how an individual is perceived, and how he or she, in turn, interprets others’ motivation, mood, and openness. It's natural to mirror; beginning as soon as infancy, a newborn moves its body to the rhythm of the voice he hears. Body language is a vital form of communication, but most of it happens below the level of conscious awareness. When you wait for a blind date to arrive, for instance, you may nervously tap your foot without even realizing that you’re doing it. Similarly, when you show up to meet your date, you may not consciously perceive that your date appears closed-off, but your unconscious mind may pick up on the crossed arms or averted gaze. Luckily, with knowledge and a little practice, it is possible to exert some measure of control over your own body language and to become more skilled at reading others. Tune in and learn how to talk in the world around you!