In episode 168 I discussed reliability but the real test of a test’s “mettle” – or how confident you can be in the results – comes when you subject it to lots of validity tests. You’ll learn a lot about validity if you take a psychology class. High validity is what separates the many fun-to-take but essentially meaningless tests you’ll … Read More
Ep 168: Reliability – the Foundation of Any Good Test
Can you tell your personality from what flavor ice cream you like? There are lots and lots of so called Personality tests on the web. How do you know when you’ve come across a good one? For example, are the inner workings of your personality revealed in the playlists you have on your smartphone or mp3 device? In this episode … Read More
Ep: 166: The Secret Life of Pronouns – an Interview with James Pennebaker
What do you reveal about yourself in the way you use the smallest and seemingly most insignificant words you use every minute? That’s the focus of Dr. James Pennebaker‘s fascinating book and one of the most interesting psychology books of 2011: The Secret Life of Pronouns. If you’re fascinated by language then you’ll find this episode especially interesting. When … Read More
Episode 140: Psychoanalyzing Jack Lalanne
In this episode I put Jack Lalanne “on the couch”. I take selections from several of his vidoes and see what they reveal about his personality. He was clearly passionate about exercise, but what drove this passion? What was his underlying motivation? I suggest that his relationship with his father was crucial to his passion for exercise and fitness. Join me as I do a little armchair psychoanalysis of Jack Lalanne.
Episode 107: Freud, Projective Tests and …. Poetry
How do the Rorschach, the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT) and the House, Tree, Person tests work? Do you reveal something about yourself when you tell stories about pictures or tell what you see in an inkblot or even when you do something as seemingly innocent as drawing a a picture of a house? Find out in this episode of The Psych Files.
Episode 104: Can Positive Affirmations Improve Your Self Esteem?
Can positive affirmations help raise your self esteem? People use daily affirmations and money affirmations to help them feel more confident, build their self esteem and bring positive events into their lives. But do they really work? If not, then what will?
Episode 82: What’s the Best Personality to be a Waiter?
What kind of personality do you need to be a good waiter/waitress? In a previous episode we talked about the tactics: touching customers, drawing smiley faces on bills, crouching down to the customer’s level, etc. But these strategies don’t always work, so what kind of person do you need to be?
Episode 64: Self Help Book – How To Tell if It’s Any Good
Self Help books: why are there so many out there? How do you choose? Can they cure depression? Help you lose weight? Stop smoking? Here’s a list of the top 14 things that really bother psychologists about self-help books.
Episode 35: The Psychology of Extreme Sports
Why do people engage in those dangerous sports like hang gliding, bungee jumping and rock climbing? Would you believe it might have something to do with neurotransmitters and something called Monoamine Oxidase?
Episode 14: What Does Your Car Say About You?
It is time to take a look at the cars we drive and find out what they say about ourselves – our personalities and our lifestyles.
