Psychology Help

Have you ever thought about what makes a good friend? Maybe you are lucky enough to have friends you know will be a part of your life for a very long time. Some struggle to make friends and feel like they just drive people away. There are many parts that make up a lasting relationship and psychology certainly hasn't figured out all of those parts.

Self-disclosure is revealing personal information to someone. It gives us a chance to put thoughts into words and for many people is therapeutic. If you think about it, talk is therapy. Research has shown that we feel better about ourselves when we have someone to talk to and when we feel better about ourselves, we become psychologically healthy. The reality is that we sometimes try to hide things about ourselves and that only adds to our anxiety.

Starting a conversation follows some unspoken rules. Most of aren't taught these rules directly. There is an unspoken code that you begin the conversation with general thoughts, like your favorite movie or book. Then if the other person reciprocates, the conversation can move forward to more "intimate" subjects. We like when people match our "level of intimacy." For instance, If someone shares with you that their father has passed, then it is probably not going to be received well if you start talking about the latest book you read. You want to show you are interested in the person and care about what they say. Often this means that if they disclose something personal, you have to decide if you are ready to do the same. Research has shown that we like to have reciprocity in our relationships until they are well established. You might notice that with some really good friends or a partner, you can talk about a stressful event and they won't have to reciprocate. In this sense, you have built a trusting relationship and can depend on this person to listen and understand. (Therapist, anyone?)

We all meet a wide variety of people and most don't end up being our friends. Anxiety and depression can have a big impact on how we interact with people and form relationships. Scientists think one of the evolutionary purposes of anxiety is to heighten senses and decide when it's time to run away. Those same scientists contend that the purpose of depression is to keep you isolated and away from danger. So, if our brain is weighing whether it should run away or avoid the interaction all together, you can imagine what your thoughts are going to be like and what the person you are trying to talk to is going to be thinking ("He doesn't seem to like to talk", "Why is he looking at the ground?", "He seems so shy").

We are more than the product of our genes but consider what you are going up against when you try to make a friend when suffering with anxiety and depression. We live in a highly social world and are often deterred from interaction when we sense something "isn't right" with another person. It's not an ideal situation but when talking about social interaction we have to consider the feelings of everyone and not just ourselves. The best thing someone with anxiety and depression can do is to get professional help and work toward being psychologically healthy. When you have confidence in your own abilities, your true personality will show through and in time you will be able to build those lasting relationships.

If you do have a good friend, take some time to tell them you appreciate what they do for you and keep that friendship going for many years to come.

Psychopathy is forever stereotyped with psychology. When I tell people I am studying psychology they immediately make a crack about "crazy." I've come to realize that few people make a distinction between psychosis and psychopathy. The two disorders could not be any different.

There has been a recent hub-bub with academics in relation to Dr. Hare's PCL-R test, which is one of the only scientifically backed assessment tests of psychopathy. Virtually all psychiatric and social intake workers are familiar with this test (a checklist actually) and it sets serious legal ramifications with jury trials if you are found to be psychopathic.

In recent news this test has come under question and studies have shown the results are highly varied. There are several measures used to determine if a testing tool is "true" and high variability does not bode well for making that case.

Two psychologists tried to publish an opinion paper calling to light the merits of the PCL-R test and evaluating psychopathy on the whole. The study was accepted for publication in an APA journal and completed the peer review process. Shortly after this Dr. Hare threatened to sue the articles authors and the APA for defamation if the article was published. Open mouth, insert foot Dr. Hare? It's important to note that Dr. Hare receives royalties for this checklists use. There is a clear motivation for him to prevent academic freedom of speech and try to quash this paper. The bad news is that Dr. Hare succeeded in having the publication delayed. The good news is that regardless the cat is out of the bag and you can bet the PCL-R is going to be the subject of some much deeper analysis in the coming months.

Also of interest on psychopathy is this article from 1935 describing a psychopath caught by the police: http://www.scribd.com/doc/32764874/Psychopaths