New Books In Psychology

In the decades after the end of slavery, African Americans were committed to southern state mental hospitals at higher rates as white psychiatrists listed “religious excitement” among the most frequent causes of insanity for Black patients. At the same time, American popular culture and political discourse framed African American modes of spiritual power as fetishism and superstition, cast embodied worship as excessive or fanatical, and labeled new religious movements “cults,” unworthy of respect. As Judith Weisenfeld argues in Black Religion in the Madhouse: Race and Psychiatry in Slavery’s Wake (NYU Press, 2025), psychiatrists’ notions of race and religion became inextricably intertwined in the decades after the end of slavery and into the twentieth century, and had profound impacts on the diagnosis, care, and treatment of Black patients. This book charts how racialized medical understandings of mental normalcy pathologized a range of Black religious beliefs, spiritual sensibilities, practices, and social

Picturing Aura: A Visual Biography (MIT Press, 2025) by Dr. Jeremy Stolow is the first book of its kind: an extended historical, anthropological, and philosophical study of modern efforts to visualize the hidden radiant force encompassing the living body known as our aura. This rich, interdisciplinary study by Dr. Stolow chronicles the rise and global spread of modern instruments and techniques of picturing aura, from the late nineteenth century to the present day, exploring how its images are put to work in the diverse realms of psychical research, esotericism, art photography, popular culture, and the New Age alternative medical and spiritual marketplace.At their core, pictures of auras are boundary objects that operate simultaneously in multiple conceptual and practical realms, serving varying goals of making art, healing bodies, and exploring the cosmos. Drawing on extensive archival as well as field research, Stolow reconstructs a global history of this boundary-crossing enterprise through its evolving m

In this concise and introductory book, David Celani examines the work of Ronald Fairbairn, one of the pioneers of Object Relations Theory. Ronald Fairbairn: A Contemporary Introduction (Routledge, 2025) adopts a unique approach to Fairbairn’s work and legacy. Organizing the book thematically, Celani makes connections between Fairbairn’s disparate and often convoluted papers, offering the reader a more accessible insight into the work of this eminent analyst. He looks in turn at Fairbairn’s field-defining work on Object Relations, split consciousness, repression and the impact of parental neglect on a child’s developing personality. Celani also explores Fairbairn’s assessment of infants’ dependency on their maternal figure and brings his ideas into the 21st century. Considering the work of Philip Bromberg in tandem with that of Fairbairn, Celani considers the practical, clinical and theoretical implications of Fairbairn’s model. This volume is essential reading for analysts in practice and training interested

Every Memory Deserves Respect: EMDR, the Proven Trauma Therapy with the Power to Heal An introduction to EMDR, a proven trauma therapy with the power to heal, cowritten by a world-renowned therapist and a patient who experienced transformative relief through EMDR therapy.Trauma is a part of life.You or someone you care about has probably experienced trauma, whether “big-T” trauma, such as emotional, physical, or sexual abuse or the more common but no less significant “little-t” trauma that can result from divorce, job loss, painful childhood experiences, or any situation where you felt worthless, afraid, or powerless. Untreated trauma can lead to long lasting effects such as depression, anxiety, PTSD, and difficulties maintaining intimate relationships.But the good news is that we can heal—and it doesn’t have to take a lifetime. EMDR (which stands for Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a unique type of psychotherapy proven to help people recover from trauma and improve the quality of their li

A friendship between an environmental historian and a chronically ill US Marine yields a powerful exploration into the toxic effects of war on the human body. Alexander Lemons is a Marine Corps scout sniper who, after serving multiple tours during the Iraq War, returned home seriously and mysteriously ill. Joshua Howe is an environmental historian who met Lemons as a student in one of his classes. Together they have crafted a vital book that challenges us to think beyond warfare’s acute violence of bullets and bombs to the “slow violence” of toxic exposure and lasting trauma. In alternating chapters, Lemons vividly describes his time in Fallujah and elsewhere during the worst of the Iraq War, his descent into a decade-long battle with mysterious and severe sickness, and his return to health; Howe explains, with clarity and scientific insight, the many toxicities to which Lemons was exposed and their potential consequences. Together they cover the whirlwind of toxic exposures military personnel face from the

Who benefits and who loses when emotions are described in particular ways? How do metaphors such as "hold on" and "let go" affect people's emotional experiences? Banned Emotions: How Metaphors Can Shape What People Feel (Oxford UP, 2019), written by neuroscientist-turned-literary scholar Laura Otis, draws on the latest research in neuroscience and psychology to challenge popular attempts to suppress certain emotions. This interdisciplinary book breaks taboos by exploring emotions in which people are said to "indulge" self-pity, prolonged crying, chronic anger, grudge-bearing, bitterness, and spite. By focusing on metaphors for these emotions in classic novels, self-help books, and popular films, Banned Emotions exposes their cultural and religious roots. Examining works by Dante, Dickens, Dostoevsky, Kafka, Forster, and Woolf in parallel with Bridesmaids, Fatal Attraction, and Who Moved My Cheese?, Banned Emotions traces pervasive patterns in the ways emotions are represented that can make people so ashamed

Today I interviewed Jan Borowicz about Perverse Memory and the Holocaust: A Psychoanalytic Understanding of Polish Bystanders (Routledge, 2024). "The assumptions of my book rely on a simple thesis: indifference to violence is impossible and that the primal scene for Polish culture is the experience of Nazism. In Poland we have still a humanitarian crisis by our border. And there is a tiny minority of local and non-local activists who sacrifice themselves and who give help to the people that are dying in the forests, especially during the wintertime. And there are people who live nearby and live day to day-by-day helping the helping the people crossing even and crossing the border and they're harassed and victims of police brutality. And then I had a very strange thought that now I can understand what happened during the during the war and during the Holocaust where exactly this where exactly this happened. And people who deal with Holocaust history and Holocaust memory had the same association, same analogy,

In Mapito: Embrace Yourself (BookBaby, 2025), Chani Getter presents both a collection of stories and a personal guide to becoming your most authentic self. Through a collection of memorable stories―sometimes funny, often poignant―this trailblazing trauma expert reveals profound truths about the human experience. "Mapito" reconnects you to what really matters, offering a fresh perspective on life, love, and self-acceptance.Drawing on deeply personal experiences, Getter's narratives are both relatable and illuminating, providing insights into human psychology and the shared struggles we all face. With warmth, humor, and compassion, "Mapito" gently encourages readers to wake up, slow down, and embrace the parts of themselves they may have overlooked or forgotten. "Mapito" is trauma therapy made accessible, a celebration of the human spirit, and a guide to living more freely and authentically than you ever imagined. Interviewee: Chani Getter is a psychotherapist, a queer activist, and interfaith minister. Chani

Mice are used as model organisms across a wide range of fields in science today--but it is far from obvious how studying a mouse in a maze can help us understand human problems like alcoholism or anxiety. How do scientists convince funders, fellow scientists, the general public, and even themselves that animal experiments are a good way of producing knowledge about the genetics of human behavior? In Model Behavior: Animal Experiments, Complexity, and the Genetics of Psychiatric Disorders (U Chicago Press, 2018), Nicole C. Nelson takes us inside an animal behavior genetics laboratory to examine how scientists create and manage the foundational knowledge of their field. Behavior genetics is a particularly challenging field for making a clear-cut case that mouse experiments work, because researchers believe that both the phenomena they are studying and the animal models they are using are complex. These assumptions of complexity change the nature of what laboratory work produces. Whereas historical and ethnogra

In Episode 8, Dr. Messina and Dr. Gill, the host and co-host of this podcast, talked about the emotional toll that is associated with lost time---time that cannot be reclaimed. While there are many things in life that can be found or recovered when lost, time is not among them; once it is gone, it is lost forever. They highlighted the impact of technology on human connections and the importance of judicious use of time for personal growth and well-being since the risks of constant digital device usage can lead to depression, suicidal ideation, and social isolation. However, alternative activities to foster more meaningful connections can mitigate losses. The inherent ambiguity of this type of loss – its lack of clear definition or resolution – is precisely what makes it so difficult to process. Because the loss is intangible (lost presence, loss of potential connections) and is ongoing rather than a single, definable event, it prevents the typical processes of grieving from unfolding naturally. Individuals

About 100 years ago, prominent psychologists Stanley Smith Stevens, Edward Tolman and Clark Hull spearheaded the idea of linking psychological concepts, such as “memory”, to specific experimental designs. In Operationism in Psychology: An Epistemology of Exploration (University of Chicago Press, 2025), Uljana Feest offers a rich analysis of this link as a method for making progress in epistemically uncharted scientific territory. Feest, a professor of philosophy at Leibniz University in Germany, considers the conceptual, epistemic, and methodological issues involved when it is not clear what a target of research is like or even whether it exists. She provides an updated interpretation of what operational definitions are and how they function in psychology, and shows how these foundational issues in psychology intersect with philosophical debates about conceptual change, natural kinds, and mechanistic explanation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a pre

A fascinating exploration of how algorithms penetrate the most intimate aspects of our psychology—from the pioneering expert on psychological targeting. There are more pieces of digital data than there are stars in the universe. This data helps us monitor our planet, decipher our genetic code, and take a deep dive into our psychology. As algorithms become increasingly adept at accessing the human mind, they also become more and more powerful at controlling it, enticing us to buy a certain product or vote for a certain political candidate. Some of us say this technological trend is no big deal. Others consider it one of the greatest threats to humanity. But what if the truth is more nuanced and mind-bending than that? In Mindmasters: The Data-Driven Science of Predicting and Changing Human Behavior (Harvard Business Press, 2025), Columbia Business School professor Sandra Matz reveals in fascinating detail how big data offers insights into the most intimate aspects of our psyches and how these insights empow

This episode delves into the intense conflicts surrounding race, history, and education in America, asking why classrooms have become such volatile battlegrounds. Moving beyond surface-level political or ideological debates, two psychoanalysts, Drs. Karyne Messina and Felecia Powell-Williams apply some of the tools of psychoanalysis to uncover the deeper, often unconscious, psychological forces at play. The discussion explores how the enduring legacy of racism in the United States, particularly the unacknowledged weight of historical trauma and guilt related to anti-Blackness, fuels a societal "War on Knowing." Central to this analysis are the defense mechanisms mobilized, both individually and collectively, to ward off the psychic pain associated with confronting uncomfortable truths. The episode focuses particularly on Denial, examining its manifestation not just as simple lack of knowledge, but as an active refusal to acknowledge the ongoing realities of systemic racism, its historical roots, and its cont

Drs. Messina and Gill discussed the concept of technoference, which refers to the interference of technology with human connection and its impact on personal interactions and relationships. They emphasized the importance of being present in the moment and not letting devices like smartphones and laptops distract us from connecting with others, highlighting the negative impact of constant distractions on relationships. Dr. Messina provided an example that focused on a family gathered around their dinner table, the aroma of food mingling with the day's leftover stress suggesting this time was meant to be a time to reconnect and perhaps to share stories. A young child, eager for attention, started to recount an exciting event from school but their parents’ attention was elsewhere. Their phones rested beside their plates, "just in case." Their thumbs were busy scrolling through social media feeds. They both offered distracted acknowledgments like "uh-huh," and "that's nice" – without ever making eye contact. The

While Kim Crespi was getting a haircut, her husband David murdered their five-year-old twin daughters during a game of hide and seek. In the aftermath, family, friends, and even David have more questions than answers. In 2005, Kim Crespi had what she later described as "the perfect life." She and her husband, David--a gentle giant of a man, devoutly religious, a loving father, and a proven star in the world of finance--had five healthy, happy children. No one, least of all Kim, ever suspected that the life the Crespis had lovingly woven together could be destroyed in less than forty minutes.In Medication, Mental Illness, and Murder, author Edward L. Jones III chronicles David Crespi's struggles with insomnia and depression, the role SSRI antidepressants may have played in the killings, and Kim's unimaginable journey of trauma, suffering, and eventual forgiveness as documented by her journal entries.Using letters and other forms of personal communications with David, plus excerpts from scholarly articles and

In You Have More Influence Than You Think (Norton, 2023) social psychologist Vanessa Bohns draws from her original research to illustrate why we fail to recognize the influence we have, and how that lack of awareness can lead us to miss opportunities or accidentally misuse our power. Weaving together compelling stories with cutting edge science, Dr. Bohns answers the questions we all want to know (but may be afraid to ask): How much did she take to heart what I said earlier? Do they know they can push back on my suggestions? Did he notice whether I was there today? Will they agree to help me if I ask? Whether attending a meeting, sharing a post online, or mustering the nerve to ask for a favor, we often assume our actions, input, and requests will be overlooked or rejected. Bohns and her work demonstrate that people see us, listen to us, and agree to do things for us much more than we realize—for better, and worse. You Have More Influence Than You Think offers science-based strategies for observing the effec

Why do our attempts to control uncertainty often leave us feeling more adrift? What if our greatest source of stress could become our deepest well of creativity? Drawing from neuroscience, psychology, and two decades of experience across advertising and venture capital, Dessy T. Levinson offers a radical reframing of how we relate to intensity. From Overwhelm to Flow: Sailing the Seas of Self with Courage, Meaning, and Resilience (Crate Mind, 2025) reveals how our nervous system actually processes complexity-and how understanding this transforms our relationship with uncertainty. Through intimate stories and cutting-edge research, the book introduces CRATE-a framework that combines cognitive insight with emotional intelligence to build lasting resilience. At its core, this book challenges our default response to overwhelm. Rather than trying to eliminate intensity or bypass emotion, we learn to welcome these experiences as portals to deeper understanding. Whether you're a founder navigating startup chaos, a

In this episode, Matthew Pieknik and Christopher Russell speak with Gohar Homayounpour about her book Persian Blues, Psychoanalysis and Mourning (Routledge, 2023) Psychoanalysis is, Homayounpour tells us early in the interview, “a profession for dreamers, for people who don't know what to do with themselves. for freaks. This is not a profession for people in suits at universities who have a clear idea of the status quo. It's the absolute opposite. It's the carnival, you know, it's still unofficial, it's the subversive because that's the discourse of the unconscious. But this is a dangerous business, you know, and it should be for both analytic subjects in the room. I'm in favor of absence. I'm in favor of disturbance. I'm in favor of pollution and darkness. I think these are things that need to be celebrated.” In Persian Blues, Psychoanalysis and Mourning, Gohar Homayounpour plays a theme and variations on loss, love, and family against the backdrop of Iran’s chaotic recent past. Homayounpour is simultaneousl

Drs. Messina and Gill talked about cognitive offloading in our digital age—how smartphones, AI, and other technologies are reshaping our mental habits, our memory, our capacity for attention, and ultimately, our emotional lives. Cognitive offloading refers to the process of using tools and technologies to take over mental functions we used to perform ourselves. Whether it's using GPS to navigate, storing phone numbers in our contacts, or asking ChatGPT for help organizing thoughts, we’re increasingly externalizing our thinking. They also discussed the psychoanalytic defense mechanisms involved in our reliance on technology, how AI impacts metacognition, and how this process influences us both individually and collectively. From a psychoanalytic perspective, cognitive offloading is similar to projection—placing uncomfortable labor or responsibility outside of ourselves. It may also involve disavowal: we know we’re becoming dependent, but we ignore or deny the psychological cost. Dr. Messina mentioned that Freu

What makes one sentence easy to read and another a slog that demands re-reading? Where do you put information you want readers to recall? Drawing on cognitive neuroscience, psychology and psycholinguistics, Writing for the Reader’s Brain (Cambridge University Press, 2025) provides a practical, how-to guide on how to write for your reader. It introduces the five 'Cs' of writing - clarity, continuity, coherence, concision, and cadence - and demonstrates how to use these to bring your writing to life. Dr. Yellowlees Douglas is the founder of ReadersBrain Academy and has spent over twenty-five years teaching writing to everyone from professors to freshmen. This interview was conducted by Renee Hale, who holds a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering and works in R&D for the food and beverage industry. She is the author of The Nightstorm Files, a voracious reader, and enjoys sharing the joy of new perspectives with listeners. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a prem